What
an amazing two months this has been!! As a freshman at Notre Dame I
have experienced what seems like a million new and wonderful things
every day. I have been challenged, but I have been blessed. I have been
nervous, but I have been excited. I have been busy, but I have been
fulfilled. I have worked hard, but I have had a blast.

Making
the transition from high school to college life has been quite an adventure,
but when I look back at the last two months, I realize that I made it
because I didn't have to do it by myself. God was with me all the time
and he blessed me with a Notre Dame family that really cares about ME!
I discovered that sense of family in the Folk Choir.

When
I auditioned for the Folk Choir, I really had very little idea what
I was getting myself into. I had heard the choir at orientation and
they were good, but so were all the other ND choirs. The reason I chose
to audition for Folk Choir was because anytime it came up in conversation
I heard the same advice: "You just have to be in it." So I decided,
"Why not give it a shot!" It was definitely the best decision I made
since coming to Notre Dame. I have been blessed through the Folk Choir
in two months far more than I imagined I ever would be.

I
like to compare my first experience with the Folk Choir with going to
a family reunion: I had no idea who anyone was but it seemed like everyone
knew me. This at first was overwhelming, but it turned out to be a blessing
in disguise. I will never forget walking around campus that first week
and being greeted by name by these random upperclassmen that I later
learned were in folk choir. My other freshman friends were so impressed
with the number of people I knew around campus. I have to say that I
felt pretty popular for a lowly freshman.

My
experience with the Folk Choir so far has been simply incredible, and
I look forward to many more wonderful "adventures." My only hope is
that the tingly feeling I get in my stomach when the choir breaks out
in spirited song will never ever fade away.

Letter
from the Presidentby Zach Linnert, (ND '03)

Four
years can fly by.

In
preparing myself for college, I attempted to prepare myself for the
obvious changes: the winter, new environment, being 2000 miles from
home. But I never stopped to prepare myself for the wonderful but brief
years I had ahead - and now toward the end of my four years, I know
there was no way I could have. To attribute my love of Notre Dame to
occasions like football games, life in the residence hall, challenges
in the classroom fails to grasp what has made my experience unique.
In stopping to capture what has been special about my experiences, I
must include the Notre Dame Folk Choir. Participating in a group that
continually (and without awareness) brings joy to the hearts of listeners,
and life to numerous and diverse liturgies has not only been a source
of spiritual growth but an honor in just pure association.

And
now, standing before the choir as their elected President, I cannot
help but feel proud of this group as a family away from home, a home
to which I can always return, and a support group that has never failed
me in my days at ND. Many years from now when I reflect on the blessings
I received at ND, I will still not be able to separate that joy that
is ND from the joy that is the folk choir. It is through this realization
that I hope to appreciate the remaining time I have with this amazing
group of musicians, ministers, and friends.

So
yes, four years do fly by. But time is irrelevant when the experience
lasts forever.

This spring the choir toured
the East Coast and Canada, stopping in New York City and Quebec City
for some tourist relaxation between concerts. You can read Spencer McSorley's
article about the tour here.
(with pictures)

Senior Packets
for You

For a few years,
the choir has been making "Senior Packets" available
to graduating Folkheads. These consist of a collection of the
Folk Choir octavos, at a reduced price. If you would like to take
advantage of this opportunity to own some Folk Choir music, and
the Choir wasn't doing senior packets when you graduated, here's
your chance! Mail a check for $30 made out to the Notre Dame
Folk Choir to the address below, along with a note letting
Steve know that you want a Senior Packet:

This is our second issue of Strings
& Wings (which we hoped would go out over fall break, but we're
on folk choir time, you know ...). Please give us any feedback that
you have about the newsletter, as we hope to keep improving it with
every issue.

Also, we are still missing information
for quite a lot of alumni. If you have any information about a missing
alumnus, or your own information has changed, please write the choir
at folk@nd.edu. We will update
your information in the database so we can keep you in touch with
what is going on in the world of Folkheads!

The website remains much the same
as it was when the last newsletter came out, but feel free to look
around and see what's around. And keep sending us news about yourself!
This newsletter is for you, so you can keep track of not only what
the choir is doing now, but what other alumni are up to as well ...
so write, and write often!